What happens when a body part is amputated from a work injury?

We had an interesting call recently from a man whose leg was amputated from a work injury in Chicago almost five years ago. 

Under Illinois law, because the amputation was below his knee, he was entitled to 215 weeks of permanent partial disability payments.  And that’s what happened.  Every week for the last 215 weeks, the insurance company sent him a check.

The problem is, the law says that he was supposed to receive this all in a lump sum, not in weekly payments.  So the insurance kept tens of thousands of dollars that he should have had all along.

The good news is that the law is crystal clear on this.  So we can file a petition for penalties and fees which will require the insurance company to pay a huge penalty and also pay the lawyer fees.

This is what should happen in every amputation case that is related to a work injury and there are no disputes to it being work related.  Fortunately, it’s not often that they can contest an amputation because unfortunately it usually involves a terrible accident.

So hopefully an amputation doesn’t happen to you, but if it does, make sure the law is followed and you are compensated right away.